Little Red
by Joshua503
Summary: Vale. A city in constant chaos by the mob bosses that are trying to take it over. The police force's best officer, Weiss Schnee, is the victim of politics and instead of being where she's needed, is on the Little Red case, trying to catch a thief, instead of saving Vale. But she soon learns that the two are not separate. And that she may be exactly where she needs to be. . .
1. Chapter 1

Weiss Schnee sighed, head buried in her hands. She was tired, really. She hadn't slept much in two days, trying to track down this thief, "Little Red". The thief had been at large for the past year or so, though no one was able to catch them.

Of course, part of that was because they weren't much of a threat. They stole from the rich upper class, those who had more than they would ever spend, and disappeared each time. In the city where organized crime thrived, with professional hitmen on every corner and people unable to walk twenty steps without being kidnapped and sold in the human trafficking rings, a thief stealing from those who had so much already wasn't very important.

Weiss had been assigned to the case after a particularly bad mess up, and while her immediate superiors understood and knew that it was beyond her control, the mayor had demanded someone pay for this, so they put her on the Little Red case.

But, punishment or not, Weiss was going to do the best damn job she could. She always gave her best, even on crap jobs like this.

She picked up her coffee cup, bringing it to her lips, only to find that it was empty. Grimacing, she started to get up, when she heard the door to her office open and close.

In walked Neptune Vasilias, her partner, holding a fresh cup of coffee. "Here you are, Ms. Schnee," his voice having a playful tone, especially on her last name.

She breathed a sigh of relief as she picked up her cup, taking a sip and grimacing at the taste, but nonetheless gave him a sincere thanks.

His smile slipped a little. "How long you been up?"

Weiss looked up at the clock, noting that it was 2 in the morning. "26 hours."

Neptune's smile stopped completely. "You need to stop pushing yourself like this."

Weiss shook her head. "No, the faster I catch Little Red, the faster I can get back to proper cases." She turned back to the papers on her desk. Maybe there was something she missed?

Neptune sat in the chair in front of her. "You're not gonna solve it if you can barely keep yourself awake."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm _fine_, Neptune, I've got thi-" Suddenly, she stopped, eyes widening. Neptune noticed the map she was looking at, with circles over every house that had been hit within the past month.

Weiss grabbed a pen off her desk, and started connecting the circles that indicated the victimized houses. Neptune raised his eyebrow. "Really? _Really_? _That's _your idea?"

Weiss scowled, but didn't look up to glare at him. "You got a better plan?" Neptune shrugged and leaned back with a sigh. "Thought so."

Neptune watched as she tried to get some sort of pattern. After several tries, though, she finally settled on one.

He squinted his eyes. "Is that. . . a rose?"

Weiss crossed and nodded, looking quite pleased with herself. "Yes."

He nodded, deciding that she was sleep deprived enough that reason wouldn't work on her. The rose itself wasn't much of a stretch. It was the symbol they tagged on every house they robbed. But for it to be their _pattern_? "Uh huh. Know where they're gonna hit next?"

Weiss didn't speak, instead pointing to a house on the map.

"You sure?"

Another resolute nod.

Neptune was silent for a second, and then said, "How long were you able to sleep last time?"

"Three hours," Weiss responded, as though there were nothing wrong with that.

Neptune sighed, knowing that in the end she'd go do this, with or without him. "When are we leaving?"

Weiss got out of her seat, throwing her coat on. "Now."

Neptune's blanched. "What? But, it's 2 AM! What makes you think she'll even show up tonight?"

Weiss glared at him. "Why? Got plans?"

Neptune gave another weary sigh, feeling far too tired for this. "No."

Weiss turned back towards the door. "Good. We're taking my car."

* * *

><p>They sat in the black car on a few houses down the street in one driveway. The owners were asleep, as far as the team could tell.<p>

Neptune sighed, heavily. Weiss was a genius, really. She'd been able to catch and put away five mob bosses already. Vale was a dangerous place, to be certain, but it had gotten less dangerous when she started working. She worked hard and drank enough coffee to turn a nearby family-run coffee shop into an international coffee chain.

Neptune also knew that when she was sleep deprived, she'd come up with leads far outside the realm of reason, but that these leads often were right. But _this_ was pushing it. "Are you sure they'll be here?" he asked, tired and exasperated.

Weiss glared at him. "Yes," she answered, before sipping some of her coffee.

He sighed again, turning to look back at the house they were staking out. "Alright, I'm just saying that- Wait."

Weiss was at attention immediately, her eyes scanning the house and landscape. "What?"

Neptune gestured towards a window that was opening from the inside. Suddenly, a small form jumped out, wearing a red hoodie and an over-full backpack. It dashed behind the back of the house, out of sight of the officers.

"Was that-"

"Only one way to find out," Weiss said as she started the car, driving down to the house. As they pulled up, they saw the suspect two back yards away, about to climb the third.

Neptune got out of the car quickly. "You cut them off from the front, I'll get 'em from behind." His partner nodded, and as soon as the door closed, she drove off. He started running towards the figure through the front lawns, before climbing over the fence to the backyard of the fourth yard down. Just in time to see them climbing over the fifth fence. He ran at them, and when he was right behind them, he said, "Freeze."

The figure tensed, for just a moment. As he reached to pull them down, they sent a kick that sent him sprawling onto the lawn. The breath knocked out of him, he got back on his feet as fast as he could. Steadying himself, he climbed the fence, and he saw the suspect running. . . Two fences away, already climbing a third. He'd only been on the ground for a few seconds! How'd they get that far away?!

But as they touched down again, he got his answer. When the punk ran, they _ran_. They were covering the yards in seconds, climbing the fences in a few more, and he knew he'd never be able to catch them. He pulled out his walkie talkie, speaking in a whisper. "They're fast. Covering the yards in seconds. Be ready. I can't catch them. Over."

Weiss's voice came over, crisp and clear. "Where're they headed? Over."

"Down the street. I think I can see a getaway car at the end of the street. Probably a minute before they gets there? Over."

Weiss grunted. "Alright, go back to the house and get a statement from the occupants. I'll get them. Over."

Neptune grunted, annoyed at her insistence to do this on her own, but understanding it. "Understood. Over and out."

The harried detective dropped down from the fence, and started walking down the houses to the one the suspect crawled out of. Out of curiosity, however, he decided to look in the backyard for clues first.

He turned on his flashlight and swept it across the grass, finding nothing, until he noticed something off about the paint on the house out of the corner of his eye. Shining his light on it, he saw what it was.

All he could do was whisper, "Holy shit, she was _right_."

Spray painted on the wall was a symbol of a rose.

* * *

><p>Weiss waited in the bushes, ready to tackle the suspect. Feet beneath her, ready to lunge, she waited.<p>

And, sooner than she thought, there the suspect was.

As the suspect dropped from the fence, Weiss shot forward, slamming into the punk at full force.

They went down together, the policeman pinning her, the person below giving an, "Oomph!" as they slammed on the ground. Quickly pushing the suspect against the dirt, Weiss pulled out a pair of handcuffs, pulling their wrists behind their back before slapping them, while reciting to them their rights. "You are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can-"

A chuckle interrupted her. The suspect below her spoke, in a distinctly girlish voice, "Wow, someone caught me! Impressive!"

The cop blinked. "Wait. How old are you?"

The hood turned, and Weiss finally took notice that it was red. Some unpleasant thoughts turned in her mind, until the lower half of the girl's face showed up, the rest hidden by the hood, and Weiss focused on the pale lips to distract herself. Another giggle came from said lips, and they said, "19-" suddenly stopping, the lips formed an "O" shape, and the girl said, "Ooohh, wait, I wasn't supposed to tell you that!"

The cop snorted, making sure the handcuffs were on, before dragging her onto her feet. "How about a name, while you're still talking?"

The girl laughed once more. "Mmm. Maybe, if you give me a kiss~"

Weiss's eyes widened, before giving a sigh. "Of course. I alw-" She was going to say, _I always get the smartasses_, but was immediately interrupted when the thief turned around to face her.

She couldn't make out much of the girl's face. Most of it was covered by the red hood that was hanging low down to her nose. The pale lips moved, and the voice coming from them sounded surprised. "Wow, really? I was just joking. . ." Her head moved up and down, appraising Weiss's form, but before Weiss could say anything, "But, well, you _are_ kind of cute!"

"Wha- I wasn't-" Suddenly, those same pale pressed against hers. Weiss gave a surprised grunt, before the lips pulled away.

Once more, Little Red laughed, and whispered, "Ruby," before suddenly dashing off.

Weiss stared at her run for a moment, two, before she yelled in frustration and took off after her.

* * *

><p>Little Red had whispered the name Ruby. Was that her name? Didn't matter. Right now, Weiss had bigger problems.<p>

Little Red could run _fast_.

Weiss could run, and run far, for a long while, but the girl was obviously faster. And, she kept ducking between houses and yards, forcing Weiss to lose sight of her for several moments before she could get above the fences. At some point, she'd managed to get her hands to the front of her body, though Weiss didn't know how, and Little Red could climb with her hands cuffed, to the cop's curiosity, surprise, and annoyance..

As she finished climbing to see another fence to see Little Red crossing a street, she heard her walkie talkie crackle to life, Neptune on the other end.

"Hey, Weiss? Where are you? The car's alone and there's no sign of either you or Little Red anywhere. Over."

She hadn't stopped running, but her hand went up to it, pressing the buttons to respond. "Here. Chasing Little Red down to the community gate. Get the car and start driving. Over."

"Got it. Out."

Ruby suddenly darted left, and Weiss grinned. She'd guessed right, and immediately moved to intercept her.

But as she got close and made a grab, the thief seemed to anticipate it, and moved just out of reach, and the laugh that Weiss had heard so much already came from those pale lips again. The sound drove Weiss madder, and she released a growl as she once again tried to grab at Little Red, but she'd already put more distance between the two.

As the gate came into view, Weiss ran faster, hoping that she would be able to end this chase when the thief tried to climb up the gate. As the girl ran, the cop smirked, knowing that the chase was about to end when she saw Neptune waiting by the gate (Car a small distance away from it to make sure she couldn't use it as a ramp to get a headstart). Neptune saw them, and he readied himself to lunge, not daring to move from the gate.

It all happened so quickly. Ruby ran right at Neptune, Neptune grabbed at her, Weiss ready to catch her if she went any other direction. But when Neptune's arms closed around her, she _ducked_ under his arms, and under his spread legs, slamming her weight and her backpack between them as she passed through, drawing a pained whimper from the blue haired cop. Weiss, not expecting the maneuver, slammed into him by accident. As they toppled to the ground, another laugh came from the hooded girl, and Weiss immediately sat up, eyes searching for her.

She found the girl, and realized just how tiny she was when she slipped through the bars of the gate with ease, cuffs and bag included.

Weiss immediately got up, and ran to the gate. As she looked through, tracking the thief, she spoke to the beguiled security guard in the guardhouse with the most authoritative voice she could manage with twigs and dirt covering her, "Open the gate."

He stared at her for a second, before nodding quickly and pressing a button, gate creaking as it opened. As it did, another groan behind her brought her attention back to her now possibly impotent partner. "You okay, Neptune?"

Another pained groan. "Dear lord, there was _a lot_ of metal in that pack! But. . ." He took a pained breath, slowly rising to his feet. "Yeah, I'll be okay. We need to go after her."

She looked back, able to see the girl still running down the hill slope that led to the upper class community. She nodded. "Get in the car and start driving, we're chasing her."

Another pained groan was his answer, but he complied, moving as quickly as he could manage into the driver's seat, Weiss getting in next to him. "Go."

He drove, and the car zoomed down the road, aimed to cut her off from the alleys at the end of the road.

They barely made it, and both partners opened their car door in anticipation of her next move. Their suspicions proved right when she jumped over Weiss's lunge, using her back as a spring board to go over the car, and right into the range of Neptune's lunge. The girl grunted as he slammed into her, using his weight to pin her down, but she slipped from his grasp a few seconds later, and used her feet to roll and run down the alley, leaving Weiss to chase after her.

* * *

><p>They ran through the cities, the girl always ducking into alleys, Weiss always close behind, before Little Red ran down one that was different in one way a minute later.<p>

The alley was tight and narrow, graffiti lining the walls and trash strewn about, forcing Weiss to be careful with her footing lest she slip. That wasn't what was different however, most alleys in this city were like that. In this alley was something useful to the police officer: a fence in the middle of it, meaning the girl would have to take some time to climb to get over it. But as soon as Weiss smirked at the thought, she saw something that would've caused her mouth to drop open if she had any less composure: Little Red immediately jumped against one wall, kicking off it and forward before kicking off the other wall, doing this three times before kicking off the wall again and landing on the other side of the fence. She hadn't even broken her stride. Weiss growled under her breath, seeing why this girl was so hard to catch. As she reached the fence herself, she decided against imitating the girl, and climbed over it, losing a few precious seconds but still being in sight of her.

As she came out of the alley, breathing heavy, she took a moment to determine where the red hood was, and found her ducking towards another alley. She took a deep breath and ran after her. This alley was cleaner, at least, and she ran with surer footing than before. As she sprinted, hoping to tackle the thief when she only had one direction to run to, Little Red suddenly burst forward, moving faster than she'd seen since the chase began. Weiss struggled to keep up, but it was in vain as the pain she had been ignoring before suddenly came back in full force, having been running at her top speed for well over twenty minutes with only brief reprieves since the thief first came out of the house.

Little Red disappeared from the end of the alley, drawing a curse from Weiss as she ran out of the alley-

And straight into someone.

Weiss fell to the ground, breath knocked out of her, and she glared at the source of what made her fall. The source was a woman, much taller than Weiss, with blond, messy hair that extended past her hips, a large chest, and revealing clothing to accentuate that fact. Lilac eyes met Weiss's glacier blue ones, and the woman held her hand to chest as an apology came from her lips. "Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to run into you!"

Weiss only grunted in reply as she quickly cast her gaze up and down the street searching for a red hoodie, but not finding any. Muttering a curse, she looked back up at the woman, who was offering a hand.

Taking it and muttering thanks, she quickly asked, "Did you see anyone in a red hoodie run through here?"

The blonde woman thought for a moment, then for a few more, and Weiss started to tap her foot impatiently before she said in an airy voice, "No, I'm afraid I haven't!"

Weiss forced out a sigh, hand pinching the bridge of her nose as she breathed carefully, trying both to contain her anger and stop the screaming in her muscles. "Are you _sure_? Short, childish, wearing a backpack, red hoodie, any of this ringing a bell?"

Again, the woman paused for a few seconds, longer than Weiss would've liked, before speaking again in that brainless, airheaded voice, "Sorry, can't say that I have!"

Another sigh came from her lips, but before she could ask any more questions, the walkie talkie on her shoulder crackled to life, Neptune's voice coming through. "Partner? Hey, did you catch her? Over."

Weiss sighed, pressing the button before responding, "Negative. Lost her in an alley. Over."

There was a noticeable pause before Neptune spoke again. "Copy that. Where are you? I'll come pick you up. Over."

Weiss looked up, noticing the blonde woman walking away, and started to look for a street sign.

Her blood ran cold before she found one, however, recognizing the street she was on easily. When she spoke again, she tried to keep her voice calm, but it was obvious to anyone that she was anything but. "White Rose Avenue."

Neptune responded almost immediately. "Alright, got it, uh, should I pick you up there, or do you want to move?"

Weiss gave a quiet nod, before remembering that he wouldn't see that. "Uh, pick-pick me up on Bumblebee."

She immediately walked back down the alley that she'd come from, even though it was the longer way around to the street she'd told Neptune, just wanting to get as far away from the street as possible.

* * *

><p>Ruby ran watched as the officer walked down back the alley, hiding behind a store sign. Holding her breath for a few seconds, she let it out when the blonde woman walking towards her gave a thumbs up. As she got closer, a grin spread on her face, and her voice was bubbly and sharp. "Hey, Ruby! That was close, huh?"<p>

Ruby frowned at her. "Your seduction trick didn't work, Yang."

Yang's eyebrows shot up. "You _actually_ tried that?"

Ruby's frown deepened, but kept her voice down in case the cop was still there. "Of course I did! You told me it was fool proof!"

Yang's hand went to her mouth, struggling to hold her laughter in. "W-well, m-may-ybe for _me_, bu-but for yo-you?"

Yang thought that Ruby's frown couldn't get any deeper. She was wrong. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

Yang started laughing, pulling out some handcuff keys from her purse and unlocking the cuffs from her wrists. Ruby rubbed them, glad to be free of the binds as Yang went to her car. "Oh, nothing~ little sis!"

Ruby growled, but waited for Yang to get into her yellow car, while Ruby stuffed her distinctive red hoodie into her already overfull backpack, still hiding behind the sign, but also keeping an eye on the road behind her should the cop try that.

The cop was _determined_, she could give her that. That was the longest she'd ever had to run from anybody in her life- Well, except once. But she didn't dwell on that.

As the car pulled up, Ruby took one quick glance around while Yang opened the passenger door, and then dashed into the seat, stuffing her bag into the floorboards, before sinking down with it to avoid being seen, closing the passenger door quietly.

Yang began driving, and when they were three streets away, she spoke up. "Hey, that cop, did she have a blue haired partner?"

Ruby's eyes widened in fear. "Yeah! Oh no, did they follow us?!" she asked, voice filled with panic.

Yang was silent for a moment, looking pensive before she spoke. "No, he seems distracted by that white haired chick. She's not looking to good." She paused a second before adding, "She looks familiar, but I can't remember from where."

Ruby was suddenly curious, but her sense of self-preservation won out, and she stayed hidden. As she heard the other car drive off, she breathed a sigh of relief. "Tonight was _way_ to close."

"Tell me all about it after we sell the loot."

A grin spread on Ruby's face, thinking of the loot she had. Suddenly, she spoke to Yang excitedly from her hiding spot, voice barely kept in control, "Yang, you should've _seen_ this house! It had _so_ much stuff! I even got three paintings! There was a bunch of good jewelry too!"

Yang chuckled, at ease as she listened to her sister cheering up. "Good to hear! We'll be there in a few minutes, so wipe yourself off," she said while picking up a towel from the backseat and throwing it at her.

Ruby caught the towel deftly and began wiping the sweat off of her, and accepted a water bottle Yang produced with quiet thanks, before draining the entire bottle in one go. She gave a sigh, closing her eyes and trying to catch her breath completely.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, the car pulled to a stop, and Yang and Ruby got out of the car, Ruby carrying her backpack closely. The building in front of them was an abandoned apartment building.<p>

As they walked through the front door, the smells of sweat, blood, and the unwashed masses passed over them, and Ruby wrinkled her nose at it. They quickly bounded the stairs, finding no problems from the squatters there, and when they reached the fifth floor, they knocked on the door twice, then a pause, then three times.

There were a few seconds of silence, then the sound of footsteps going towards the door. A few seconds later, the sounds of locks being opened sounded, and the door opened to reveal a girl in a white long-sleeved shirt with a black vest, and black pants.

Yang waggled her fingers at her, and said in a cheerful voice, "Hiii Blakey!"

Blake gave her a smirk, merely gesturing for them to enter, then locking the door behind them. When she turned to speak to them, long black hair sweeping behind her, golden eyes nearly glowing, she spoke in a calm, measured tone. "What do you have for me?"

The room they were in was small, and no one would mistake this for a luxury suite in their lifetimes. The walls were bare and stained, the floor in much the same state. There was a single barred window with a fire escape right past it, and the only light in the room came from a single lightbulb in a lamp. In the center of the room was a long table and three chairs seated around it.

Yang nodded to Ruby, and Ruby began setting stuff down on the table, carefully and gently, not wanting to break anything.

The valuables were varied, ranging from necklaces to little porcelain figures inlaid with real gold. But the items all had one thing in common: They were valuable.

Blake started looking over the goods, mentally appraising each, as Yang pulled out her calculator and did the same.

Blake pointed to an elaborate necklace made of gold, inlaid with a large ruby surrounded by smaller gem stones. "1000 lien."

Yang looked at the necklace, before shaking her head. "2000 lien."

"1200 lien."

"1900 lien."

"1200 lien."

Yang smiled, leaning over the table, and inadvertently giving an ample view of her cleavage. "Aww, c'mon, Blakey. You can go higher than that."

Blake cracked out another smile, mimicking her stance. "Not with the prices you're asking for."

Yang's grin turned dangerous as she leaned in close to Blake's ear and whispered something Ruby could only make out as, "Well, what if I-" before it got too low for her hearing (For which Ruby was grateful.)

Blake's grin faded away as a blush spread on her face, and she gave a cough, before muttering, "2000 lien."

Yang's grin widened in contrast to Blake's, and gave an enthusiastic, "Deal!"

And that was how the time went, in their usual game. Yang and Blake would barter over an item Ruby had stolen, before deciding on a price by whispering something seductive in the other's ear. As far as Ruby knew, they weren't intimate like that, but they might as well have been. Sometimes Blake would fold, sometimes Yang would, but Ruby knew that at the end of the day, they'd both be spending an hour alone in their rooms or taking a cold shower.

As they reached the last of the items, Ruby checked the time. 4:37 A.M. The negotiations had taken much longer, which made sense because Ruby had brought in a much larger haul than normal. She gave a tired yawn on instinct, but the other girls didn't seem to notice as they finished negotiating.

All in all, the pay was more than they were expecting, but less than they were hoping for, which was how these things normally went. Blake reached under the table for a briefcase and opened it up, revealing more than a million lien in cash, before counting out how much she had spent tonight.

As she handed over the money, Yang placed it on the table without double counting, and Ruby immediately began checking to make sure no one was listening in. As she gave the all clear, Yang nodded, but Blake spoke first. "Okay, so how much do we keep, how much do we give away?"

On the surface, Blake was loyal to Roman Torchwick, top lieutenant to the Cinder Fall, the biggest mob boss in Vale. In truth, she, Yang, and Ruby were all partners, wanting to bring Cinder Fall down in revenge. But Ruby didn't dwell on that.

Ruby, being the one who did a lot of the leg work to finance them, actually had a significant control over their budgets, and the two looked at her. She stared at it, doing the calculations in her head. It was _a lot_ of money, and she knew that they would need only so much. "70/30. Even with that, it's still the largest haul we've had in a while."

Yang and Blake nodded, and Blake set to work splitting the cash. The 70% would go to various orphanages and soup kitchens around Vale, while they'd keep the thirty. Splitting the two into uneven piles, she slid them back to Yang. "I've got to get going. Roman needs me to do some accounting before noon, and I don't want him getting suspicious."

Yang gave a nod and a smile. "I understand, Blakey." She held her smile for a few more seconds, before it faded and she put her hand on Blake's shoulder. "Be careful."

Blake gave her a smirk. "Aren't I always?"

Yang smiled back at her, and Blake picked up the suit case and left.

The blonde stretched her back, sending cracking sounds throughout the room. Ruby could still see the flush of her cheeks, and knew that right now, her half-sister wanted to get home quickly to relieve some. . . tension. "Okay, Ruby, let's get home, huh?"

Ruby yawned, glad that she'd be asleep while Yang did what she needed. "Yeah, I'm exhausted."

Yang chuckled. "I'm sure you are. When we get home you can go to bed. And on the way back, you can tell me _alllllll_ about how you tried to seduce the lady-cop."

Ruby blushed in embarrassment, before saying, "Well the trick _didn't work!_"

**A/N: Okay, so, new fic! The others aren't cancelled, don't worry, but I needed to get this out. Seriously, I start writing and suddenly I can't stop. I'm writing a novel right now, for Hell's sake.**

**So, this is based on inqgaytor's Cop AU Prompt (Found here:inqgaytor,tumblr,com/post/97653358989/a-few-days-ago-i-came-up-with-this-super-cute-au ). If this seems similar to The Rose Thief, that's probably because both fics are based off of that one prompt. I have yet to read The Rose Thief, by the way. Personal policy. Never read anything that's set in too similar a setting to the one I'm using lest I accidentally steal ideas. Or get discouraged because theirs is so much better.**

**Anyway. Had fun writing this. Have some good ideas for it, not as many as I'd like, but I end up figuring out how plots go as soon as I write them anyway.**

**Don't worry, Days at Signal and Snow Like Roses will be updating soon, just been a bad few days, but they're getting better. And, of course, writing.**

**So, have a nice day!**

****Edit: Thank you, George Oswald Dannyson for pointing out several typos. They have been fixed. george-oswald-dannyson,tumblr,com** And thank you Atlantean King for pointing out the walkie talkie language error. I tried to find the proper way to do it, but I couldn't find anything, and couldn't remember the proper words.  
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	2. Chapter 2

The door to the precinct opened, letting in the afternoon light as Neptune walked in. After the fiasco that was the night before, he had come back to the precinct so that they could pick up their cars and go home. Neptune had insisted on making sure Weiss got home okay because of how shaken up she seemed, but she'd firmly denied his requests. Then he got home, collapsed on bed, and woke up 7 hours later at 1, and got ready for work.

Weiss was known for her odd work hours lately, and that had been a habit passed onto him. Normally being this late would be grounds for him being fired, but everyone knew that at this point, if he tried to get in on time every day he'd be so sleep deprived that he couldn't get anything done.

As Neptune walked in, feeling refreshed, he noticed his partner talking to Pyrhha, her partner before him. Pyrhha was taller than Weiss (Not that that was hard, Weiss was pretty short), with long red hair tied into a pony tail. She had green eyes, and was obviously physically fit. As Neptune got closer, he could hear what they were talking about. "Wait, her name's Ruby?"

Weiss nodded. "That's what she said."

"She might've been lying."

"I know. That's why I'm asking you."

Pyrhha nodded at that, thinking for a moment before shaking her head. "I'm sorry. I can't figure her out on what you gave me."

Weiss sighed, but waved away her apology. "No, don't worry about it. It wasn't much to work on after all. Thanks for trying."

Neptune couldn't help but notice that Weiss was not looking at Pyrhha during the entire conversation. She was looking near her, but never directly at her. Pyrhha gave a nod and a friendly smile, which Weiss returned, though it was strained a bit.

The blue haired cop never could understand why Weiss had requested a change in partners. He had his guesses (_Everyone_ had their guesses), but he didn't know. The two worked well together, and together were responsible for a noticeable decrease in the crime around Vale. But then, two months ago she requested a change in partners. Pyrrha, nice as she was, let it go unchallenged, and ended up with the rookie Jaune Arc as her new partner, which was definitely a step down. Meanwhile Weiss got him, and while they worked pretty well together, his partner would often go to Pyrrha to discuss theories.

As Pyrrha walked away, towards the blonde haired mess wrestling with the coffee machine at the other end of the room that was her partner, Weiss caught sight of him. "Oh, Neptune, good to see you. How are you feeling?"

Neptune normally would've grinned and flirted, but after last night, he was still worried. "I'm fine. How're you?"

Weiss paused for a moment, not expecting his response. "I'm fine, why?"

He shrugged. "Well, it's just, last night you were rather shaken up. I've never seen you like that before."

Weiss shook her head. "I'm fine. I was just tired."

Neptune knew he should've kept pushing the issue, but he didn't get the chance. Instead, she brushed past him, walking towards their office. Neptune quickly followed after her as she started speaking. "Alright, so, we _might_ have a name: Ruby. Unfortunately, I checked with City Hall, and there are more than a thousand people in Vale with that name, and we don't even know if it's her real name or not."

"Wait, when did we learn her name?"

"Oh, right, we didn't have time to discuss that. She said her name and age when I caught her."

Neptune stopped walking for a second, before catching up.

"She blurted them out." Weiss walked into the office, holding the door open for Neptune before closing it behind him.

"Wait, she just said them?" Neptune took a seat on one side of the large desk in the room.

Weiss took a seat at the other before speaking. "Well, she just said her age, when I asked her."

Neptune frowned. "Wait, then how did we get the name Ruby?"

"She said it after she kissed me."

Neptune's eyes shot open, and he stammered, "W-what? She _kissed_ you?"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Don't know why. I think she was trying to seduce me into letting her go."

He coughed. "And you _let_ her? Didn't know you were the kind to fraternize with criminals, Weiss." He paused for a moment, watching her reaction, before adding, "You shouldn't roll your eyes so much. They'll pop straight out of your head."

His partner snorted before responding, "I _didn't_ let her. She took me by surprise, and then ran off."

Neptune nodded, but looked at the file Weiss had opened on her desk. Inside was the map that she had drawn on the day before, along with several other pieces of paper. Weiss then looked directly into Neptune's eyes as she circled the house that was hit last night, and then connected it with a line to the others.

A smirk was on her face.

"Okay, okay, you _may_ have been right."

"No, I _was_ right. I said she'd be there, and she was."

Neptune sighed as she closed the file, same smirk on her face. "Alright, alright, you were _right_."

Weiss leaned back in her chair, looking smug as can be as she said, "I'm glad that you remembered that fact."

It was Neptune's turn to roll his eyes, but he smiled, glad to see her back to normal. "Yeah, yeah. So, what now?"

Weiss pulled out a scrap of paper, scribbling down an address before handing it over to him. "I'm betting she'll hit here next."

He looked at the address, nodding before setting it down. "So when do we leave?"

The white haired cop looked up at the clock, noting the time. "Around 7 P.M. I wanna be there early."

Neptune leaned forward on the desk, putting on his best smile. "Soooo. That leaves about five hours for free time. Wanna do something? Maybe go out for a cup of coffee?"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "No. I've got reports to fill out, and so-" she pulled out a stack of papers, letting them slam in front of him to accentuate her point, "do you."

Neptune sighed, and began working.

* * *

><p>Ruby walked down the street, sans hoodie, enjoying the feeling of the sun shining on her. Turning down Mountain Glenn street, she looked down at her destination, two story building, a bit damaged but overall looking well, and began walking towards it.<p>

A quick glance to her left and right assured her that she wasn't being watched, and she walked down towards the building. Climbing the steps to the worn door, looking around one more time, she pressed the doorbell.

A few seconds later, she heard footsteps on the other side stop in front of the door. Soon, the door creaked open, and a woman with green eyes and blonde hair looked out at her, a smile on her face. "Ah, Ms. Rose. Good to see you again. Would you like to come in?"

Ruby could hear the children on the other side, possibly playing a game, and shook her head. "Nah, sorry, Glynda, I can't stay long. I came by to drop off a donation."

Glynda's smile faded a bit at hearing that she couldn't stay, but was obviously grateful for the donation none the less. "Of course, Ms. Rose. Thank you for continued support of 'The Yellow Brick Road Orphanage'."

Ruby smiled, taking the money out of her pocket and handing it to the caretaker.

Glynda's eyes widened at the amount, smile faltering, and after a few seconds, asked, "Stocks being kind recently, Ms. Rose?"

Ruby gave a nervous giggle, hand going behind her head as she said, "Yep! Got lucky! We sold all our stock in a company right before it folded!"

Glynda nodded, smile firmly affixed again, taking the money and putting it in her pocket. "Are you sure you can't stay? I'm sure the kids would love to see you again."

Ruby shook her head. "Sorry, busy day."

"Very well, Ms. Rose. I wish you a pleasant evening."

"You too, Glynda."

And with that, Glynda shut the door.

Ruby sighed, walking away. Glynda knew, of course, that she was lying about the investments, but was always nice enough not to question it.

Glynda was the only thing resembling a social worker in the city. She ran the only orphanage, the soup kitchens, and everything else resembling basic human kindness. Of course, in this city, she was swamped. There was no way for her to help everyone, but she'd always try.

And Ruby figured she could lend a helping hand. The money would last her a while, but it would take more than just money to fix this city.

Ruby glanced at the screen of her phone, taking the time. _Huh. Earlier than I thought. Guess I can grab a quick coffee before I go to the meeting._

Taking off down the street, she started heading towards the closest coffee shop she knew of.

* * *

><p>Weiss rubbed her temples, headache forming from the dull monotony of the reports before her. Her hand reached for her cup, bringing it to her lips, and tasting. . . nothing.<p>

Glaring down at her cup, she found it empty. Giving a sigh, she moved to stand up, "I'm going to go get more coffee."

Neptune put up his hand. "No, I'll do it! It's fine!" He shot up, grabbed her cup, and ran out the door.

Weiss chuckled, amused by his efforts to get away from the reports. Then she turned her attentions back to the reports on her desk and cursed herself for not thinking of it first.

A few seconds later, Neptune opened the door to the office, and leaned his head in, a look of fear on his face. "Uh, Weiss?"

Looking up at her partner, annoyed by the lack of coffee, asked, "Yes, Neptune?"

"The uh," Neptune started stammering, "Uh, okay, so, it's like this, uh-"

Weiss would usually have more patience, but the lack of coffee currently being inhaled by her was getting on her nerves, and she snapped, "What **is it**, Neptune?"

Neptune flinched, before quickly stammering out, "Arc broke the coffee machine."

Neptune gave another flinch as he heard the pencil in Weiss's hand snap.

"Okay, Weiss, just because you're a cop doesn't mean you can kill him, he's just a newbie, he doesn't know how to use it-"

"Trust me, Neptune," Weiss said, voice dangerously low and cold, "when I kill him, there won't be any evidence it was me."

Neptune stepped into the office now, hands raised to placate her. "Okay, Weiss, let's just calm down here, there's no reason to kill him over a coffee machine-"

"Exactly. They won't be able to pin me for a motive like that." Weiss was on her feet now, looking around the room for something to use as a weapon.

"Weiss, _please_, there's no need for this, we can replace the coffee machine-"

"And we'll buy the replacement from the money saved by not having to give him a paycheck." She'd settled on a sharpened pencil, now planning to stab it through his eyes.

"Okay, Weiss, how _about_-" Neptune quickly walked forward, taking the pencil from her, before turning back to her, "you go out to a café or something? Huh? I'll stay here and do _all_ the reports, you can just go to a nice café and get some nice coffee for once!"

Weiss glared at him, but put down the letter opener she just picked up and nodded once. Neptune gave a sigh of relief as she walked out the door, ignoring the flaming coffee machine with the rookie frantically trying to put the fire out by smothering it in paper, with Pyrhha's face half hidden by her palm nearby. Weiss just thought about getting some nice coffee into her system to placate her growing rage.

Maybe she'd put some vodka in it.

* * *

><p>Ruby stood in line at the small café. It wasn't her favorite café, not by a longshot, but it was relatively close to her meeting place, and she didn't want to be late. Looking around at the small interior in the café, the walls were brown, the floor green, the seats and tables all blending in well. It was a quiet place, kind of fancy, though the coffee was a bit bland.<p>

Smiling at the barista and paying the money, Ruby took her coffee and moved out of line, standing by while considering where to sit. As she decided, she took a sip of her coffee and grimaced. They'd given it to her black when she wanted sugar. Turning around, she immediately took a step forward, and. . .

Slammed into someone.

Coffee went over both of them, splashing on Ruby's black shirt and all over the floor, and she dropped her cup (and heard another drop right after) from the sudden scalding pain on her chest as she fell down. She started muttering apologies as she tried wiping the coffee off, before she heard someone else start giving apologies, albeit with much more dignity.

Ruby stopped moving. She recognized her voice. It _couldn't _be? What were the odds?

Ruby looked up as a pale hand was offered to her. A woman in a blue police uniform stained with coffee, with white hair tied in an off center ponytail and a scar running through the blue eye on the left, was looking at her, waiting patiently.

Ruby's thoughts were simple:

_Ohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrap_-

Without thinking, Ruby grabbed the cop's hand, and just barely resisted the instinct to flip her over. As she was pulled towards her feet, she looked closer at her face, looking for any signs that she recognized her from last night. . . and found none. _Right. She never saw my whole face._

"Are you okay?" the cop asked.

Ruby gave a nervous chuckle. "I'm fine!" glad that she'd made her voice sound higher the night before. "Just. . . fine."

The cop nodded. "Alright. Just wait here, I'll get you another coffee. How do you take it?"

"Oh, no, that's fine, I need to-"

The woman shook her head. "No, I knocked you over, I insist on paying for your replacement."

Ruby just wanted to get out quickly. "I knocked you over! I turned around and wasn't paying attention." Then her mouth went on without checking with her head. "I'll pay for your coffee instead. How do you take it?"

The cop blinked, taken aback as she stammered, "Black. Wait, no, I'm paying for _your_ coffee!" Her voice was tinged with anger now, and she spoke with authority. "How do you take _your_ coffee?!"

Ruby instinctively took a step back and before she could stop herself said, "Cream and five sugars!" Then Ruby mentally slapped herself. "Wait, no, I'm paying for your coffee!"

The cop glared at her, before turning around and immediately slapping some money on the counter, followed a second later by Ruby, as they both shouted at the same time, "Coffee-"

"Black!"

"Cream with five sugars!"

The barista stared at them, expression blank, as they silently took the money and prepared the coffee, giving the black coffee to Ruby and the sugar-death coffee to woman in blue, before turning away and smiling at the next customer.

Ruby and the woman in blue turned towards each other, and thrust the coffees at each other. They stared at each other, rage and fury in both their eyes.

And then they burst out laughing.

"Oh, man-"

"Hahaha, oh, we're just-"

"I mean, hahaha!"

The cop laughed, wiping her eye, and said, "We're getting too worked up over this."

Ruby nodded her head, and offered the coffee. "Yeah. Here ya go!"

The cop gave her a smile, and took it with a little bow, before handing her the other coffee in her hands. "You're coffee."

Ruby took it, mimicking her bow. "Why, thank you ma'am!"

The cop gave another laugh before extending her hand. "Weiss."

Ruby took her hand, and said, "Ru-" before stopping herself, remembering that she _probably_ shouldn't use her first name. Weiss looked at her curiously, and Ruby passed the pause off as another laugh. "Uh, Rose."

Weiss smiled again, and said, "It's nice to meet you, Rose. I'm avoiding work right now, so want to sit down while we drink?"

Ruby thought for a moment, checking the time on her phone. Fear was still coursing through her, but the fight they'd just had was fun, and the cop didn't recognize her. She still had some time, and, hey, she might be able to get some information out of her. "Uh, sure!" Ruby smiled.

They moved to a table, Ruby sitting closer to the door in case she needed a quick escape. As Weiss sat down, she took a sip of her coffee and grimaced. "Oh, sorry, did they give you the wrong coffee?"

Weiss shook her head, setting her cup down as she leaned back into the seat. "No, they got it right. I'm just picky about my coffee." She sighed, taking another sip before continuing. "I haven't been able to find a decent coffee shop in months.

Ruby frowned, and decided to make a recommendation. "How about the White Rose Café? It's good! They even renamed the street it's on after it! Only reason I'm not there is-" _Because I didn't want to run into you there today_ "because I have a meeting near here soon." _Well, it's not a lie, at least._

Weiss gave a simple nod. "I'll keep it in mind."

Ruby decided to change the subject. "So, you said you're avoiding work?"

A melodic laugh came from her. "Yeah. Neptune – that's my partner, by the way – and I were working on reports. Dull, monotonous, I was getting a headache from being in there. And then the coffee machine broke, so here I am."

Ruby scrunched her brow. "Wait, so they just let you walk out?"

"It's not that simple. Everyone in the precinct knows that I need my coffee, and they all know that I'm on a bad case anyway."

Ruby was suddenly curious. "Bad case?"

Weiss chuckled. "Yeah, that Little Red case. You know, that thief stealing from the rich?"

Ruby nodded, annoyed at the Little Red name, but ignored it in favor of another question. "How's that a bad case?" she asked, more than a little hurt that she was considered a punishment.

"Because it's not _important_. Look outside." Weiss gestured out the window, towards the people outside.

Ruby looked at them, not noticing anything odd. "What about outside?"

Weiss stared directly into Ruby's eyes, and the thief noticed a fire in her eyes. "The _people_. They're scared. It's subtle, but it's there! Everyone's ready to run at the sound of a gunshot, or a fight, or a freaking car crash, they're so scared! Just _look_ at them!"

Ruby looked at the people outside again, and saw what Weiss meant. The people outside _looked _fine, if you avoided looking too closely. But if you _saw_ them, beneath the surface, you could see it. Their shoulders were tense, they were looking everywhere at once, no one was relaxing, and everyone was plotting an escape plan.

Ruby gave a slow nod, and Weiss kept talking. "That's just my point! You never noticed before today, did you?" Ruby gave another small nod, realizing that she hadn't. "See? People are living scared, and no one _notices_, because they don't see anything wrong! This street is beautiful, and no one notices because all they see are ways to run away! There's over a million people in this city yet not _one_ of them is _living_!" Weiss leaned forward, fire burning brightly in her eyes as she spoke. "The mob bosses have everyone afraid that they'll be next. Or that they'll be shot because of a turf war. And this is _normal_, now. No. I don't want this city to accept _this_ as normal. I don't want people always looking over their shoulder. I don't want the city to be torn apart by the gangs. I want this to _change_. ." Weiss leaned back again, and she spoke her next lines with such conviction that Ruby knew that she'd die to see it through. "This city will be _free_."

Ruby couldn't say anything, but didn't have to, as she watched Weiss's shoulders slump as she gave a tired sigh. "But before _that,_ I either have to catch Little Red or wait until the people up top think I've been punished enough. And the latter would take too long."

Ruby felt a pang of empathy for her. She wasn't going to let herself get caught, of course, but maybe there was something she could do?

Weiss interrupted her thoughts. "Sorry, I got carried away there."

The cop was giving Ruby an apologetic look, and Ruby shook her head and gave her a reassuring smile. "Oh, no, don't worry about it. It's fine." She paused, then added, "It's good to know that someone out there _cares_." There was bit more relief in her voice when she said it, but she pressed on. "I mean, everybody just seems out for themselves now."

Weiss shrugged. "That's how people are. They get scared and run." She turned to the window, and was suddenly quiet. "But everyone deserves a chance."

Ruby took a sip of her coffee, looking out the window along with Weiss. "Yeah." Then she made a decision. "Maybe I can help."

Weiss looked back at her, eyebrow raised. "How so?"

Ruby gave an enigmatic smile, and gave a sing-song, "You'll see~."

Weiss was about to respond when Ruby's phone rang. Fishing it out of her pocket, Ruby realized that it was warning her about her meeting. "Oh, sorry, I've got to go! Meeting's about it to happen and I can't afford to be late!" Flashing a hasty smile, she stuffed her phone away and picked up her coffee. "Bye- Oh! Uh-" Floundering a bit, the thief pulled off the sleeve from the cup, and wrote her number on it. "Here, my phone number! Call or text, you know, whenever! Oh, but I work nights, so it's probably best if you call between noon and 8 P.M. Bye!" Darting out of the coffee shop, Ruby left down the street in a hurry. As she rounded the corner and made sure that Weiss wasn't following her, Ruby let out a sigh.

The experience had been _interesting_, at least. And Ruby felt that if she made the effort, she could befriend the cop, and help her a little. Not to catch her, but to help out with the mob problem. It was the same goal, after all, just different methods.

Convincing Yang and Blake however. . .

* * *

><p>Weiss looked at the number on the sleeve, memorizing it and adding it to her phone. As she leaned back, finishing her coffee and wondering if she should get another, her phone rang. Recognizing it as the tone for her partner, she answered. "Hello."<p>

"Hey, Weiss, it's Neptune. The coffee machine's been replaced."

"Already?"

"Yeah. I maaaay have told Jaune that I had to talk you down from murdering him after he broke it."

Weiss chuckled. "I wasn't going to actually do it."

Neptune gave an unimpressed, "Uh-huh." A second later, he said, "So, whenever you're ready to come back, we've got coffee." His voice deepened, and he seductively said, "I'll make a special cup, just for you."

She snorted. "And it will taste like all the other cups: awful."

His voice filled with mock hurt. "Aww, you wound me milady!"

Rolling her eyes, she stood up. "I'm coming back to the office. Get a cup ready so I don't kill Jaune when I get there."

"Got it!"

* * *

><p>Ruby took a deep breath as she stepped next to Yang, who muttered, "You were nearly late."<p>

"Thing happened, tell you later."

And they walked through the door.

The warehouse was dark, but not dark enough to hide the guys with assault rifles on the cat walks above them. Ruby's eyes tracked them, noting the make of the guns, and then swept her eyes across the warehouse.

It was mostly empty, with a single light shining down towards the center of it. The pair walked forward, until they were standing on one edge of the light. Two guards came forward, patting them down for weapons, and, finding none, motioned to one of the guards on the catwalk. The one up top gave a nod, then said something into their walkie talkie.

A woman walked forward into the light and they got a good look at the most powerful mob boss in all of Vale.

Cinder Fall stood in front of them. She had amber eyes, black hair, and fair skin, with red clothing that ended right below her waist. She bespoke power in every step.

Her voice was like silk when she greeted them with a smile that conveyed every conceivable sin. "So, this is the _infamous_ Little Red." Ruby contained a wince when she called her that. "Such a pleasure to finally meet you."

Ruby gave her sweetest smile and nodded her head towards Cinder. "And to you, Ms. Fall," she said, hoping her voice wasn't too shaky.

Cinder then turned towards Yang, smile never fading. "And Yang Xiao Long, you've done a good job of keeping yourself under the radar."

Yang gave her trade-marked grin, and chirped, "What can I say? I'm just that good!"

Cinder's smile widened a bit, and a small laugh escaped her. "Of course you are. That's what I'm counting on."

The blonde didn't miss a beat. "Got a job for us?"

"Yes." She nodded, to a person in the shadows, and Blake walked forward, face a mask as she handed an envelope to Yang. "You'll find the details in that folder."

Yang's smile faded. "Wait, if the job's in this folder, why meet with us?"

Cinder looked directly at Yang. "I wanted to personally meet you both before I hired you on for this job." Cinder turned and began walking towards the door. "Have a nice day, ladies."

Blake turned and followed Cinder out the door, and Ruby and Yang went out the opposite door.

Neither said anything until they got to their apartment, when they both finally let the tension roll off their shoulders.

Still, neither spoke, until they both got to the table and opened the folder.

Ruby read the first line on the page, and blurted, "The TREE RINGS MUSEUM?!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, here's the new chapter of this. Hope you enjoy it!**

**I enjoyed the last episodes of RWBY's second volume, though the next few days were filled with FNDM drama. So, there's that. Either way, I enjoyed them, and no one can tell me I didn't.**

**I'm hoping to get the next chapter of Snow Like Roses out soon. AO3 is something I probably won't be using for a while, because of how the uploading system works (Hint: Not well. At least not for me.). Of course, it's still in Beta, I'm sure it will improve.**

**The name of the museum is from Beady, and you can also thank him for sparking the resulting subplot that formed in my mind from it (More on that, next chapter? Maybe?). Here's Beady's tumblr: overlord-beady,tumblr,com .**

**Have a nice day!**

**Date: 11/11/14**


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